Contracting with local boat owners, and visually modifying them with simulated machine guns was pretty innovative.

After working with those, a live fire portion of the evaluation was conducted using unmanned target boats.

Combat Hammer is the program code name for the Weapon System Evaluation Program for air to ground weapons. It is run by the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group based at Tyndall AFB in Florida.

Essentially, after Development Test and Evaluation, and Operational Test and Evaluation, WSEP does Follow On Test and Evaluation. FOT&E is where the tactics, techniques and procedures to use a weapon, or a family of weapons, or even complete weapon systems, are evaluated, to give operational squadrons guidance on how best to address a given threat.

Rather than using their own fleet of aircraft, Combat Hammer hosts detachments from the squadrons that will actually be using the weapons and tactics. Thus, in addition to validating TTPs, the squadrons get valuable experience using weapons on a fantastic range complex, training they might not ordinarily be able to conduct.

Combat Hammer hosts virtually every type of USAF aircraft with an air to ground capability. In addition, friendly foreign air forces are often invited to participate.

On the air to air side, WSEP also runs Combat Archer, and even has the little discussed Combat Sledgehammer, which develops TTPs for nuclear weapons.